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Her Royal Highness Princess Aisha Bint Al Hussein

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Aisha Bint Al Hussein was born April 23, 1968 in Amman, Jordan. She was educated in Amman until the age of eight. She spent the next ten years in the United States, beginning in Washington DC and ending with her graduating from Dana Hall High School in Wellesley, Massachusetts, in 1986. While on summer holiday in Amman, before starting her senior year at Dana Hall, Aisha became the first female in the Middle East to complete five military parachute jumps and receive her wings. She then enrolled in the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst in the United Kingdom, where she completed her officer’s training course in April 1987. She was the first female from the Middle East to attend Sandhurst. Aisha completed her second education by receiving her undergraduate degree in Modern Middle East History and Politics from Pembroke College of Oxford University. In 1990, Aisha married Zeid Saadedine Juma in Amman. They have a boy, Aoun, born on May 27, 1992, and a girl, Muna, born on July 18, 1996.

After graduation from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Lt. Col. Aisha spent three months on a special course set by the British Army in which she visited all of the female military establishments in Great Britain. The course gave her valuable insight about how to go about advancing the interests of military women in Jordan. While on breaks from Oxford University, Lt. Col. Aisha worked with the Special Forces and graduated several parachute courses. From 1993 until 1994, she was Founder and Researcher of the Office of HRH Princess Aisha and in 1995 she became Director of the Directorate of Women’s Affairs in the Jordanian Armed Forces. Also in 1995, Lt. Col. Aisha completed a security and protection training course with the Royal Guard.

In 1988, she received her first medal for hanging under a helicopter with members of the Special Forces during a fly-by at a military parade for His Majesty King Hussein. Her other awards include: The Order of Merit – Level 4, The Decoration of Independence – Level 1, The Medal of Administrative Competence, and the King Hussein Medal for Excellence, for taking first place in M-16 marksmanship on the Royal Guard Protection Course.

Lt. Col. Aisha has always been interested in women’s rights and has enjoyed breaking new ground on behalf of women in Jordan. She is always interested in supporting women in finding new roles within Jordan and believes that with the right qualifications, women in Jordan are capable of holding positions on all levels, whether in government, the private sector, or in institutions such as the armed forces. Lt. Col. Aisha serves as patron for official functions supporting various charities, schools, and universities with Jordan. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and sports.

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